in ten days, under current law, tax rates are scheduled to rise on most americans. >> even though democrats and republicans are arguing about whether those rates should go up for the wealthiest individuals, all of us-- every single one of us-- agrees that tax rates shouldn't go up for the other 98% of americans. >> reporter: the president met with harry reid at the white house and spoke with house speaker john boehner. mr. obama said lawmakers need a break from fiscal cliff frustration-- much of it self- induced. >> we move forward together or we don't move forward at all so as we leave town for a few days to be with our families for the holidays, i hope it gives everybody some perspective. >> reporter: the president will follow his own advice. lawmakers and return to washington if there is a deal. >> pelley: major, thank you. as you know, this debate is all about bringing the federal budget under control. if the white house and congress can't figure it out, big across- the-board budget cuts and those tax increases we mentioned kick in automatically january 1. the so-called fiscal cliff. th